An Assessment of the Incidence of Poverty Among Rural Active Population in Mangu Local Government Area, Plateau State, Nigeria

Abstract

The study investigated the incidence and spatial distribution of poverty among rural active population in Mangu Local Government of Plateau State, Nigeria. The objectives of the study were to determine the socio-demographic and economic characteristics of the respondents; the incidence and spatial distribution of poverty and the causes of poverty in the study area. A sample size of 500 was adopted for the study. The study area comprised of 11 districts and over 260 settlements. Five districts and 25 settlements were selected using the random and systematic sampling techniques. The questionnaire, focus group discussions and in-depth interviews were used as tools for data collection from the respondents. The data were analyzed using different statistical techniques such as descriptive, correlation analyses as well as ANOVA. The finding reveals that there is high and spatial variation in level of poverty in the study area. Many reasons were identified to have influenced poverty in the study area such as failure of agriculture due to high cost of farm inputs, crises, decline of tin mining activity in the study area as well as low level of education, and low income among others. Recommendations were made for policy makers and implementers to empower the rural areas and enhance the development of the country side.

Keyword: Incidence, Poverty, Rural, Active Population